Kathy Dahlkemper is leading Congressman Phil English 49-45 in a new independent poll conducted by the DC paper Roll Call. They say English "is in serious trouble"

Roll Call's poll, conducted by SurveyUSA, shows Dahlkemper opening up a 49-45 lead over English, with Dahlkemper beating English by a 63-32 split among moderates.

The poll also pointed out that voters show high disapproval ratings for the 14-year incumbent--more people viewed him unfavorably than favorably.

Be sure to check this out...it's one of the hottest races in the nation!

I'll be moderating a debate between Congressman Phil English and Kathy Dahlkemper on October 8th at 7 p.m. at Allegheny College.

It will be a 70-minute debate and we'll be taking questions from the audience.

It's going to be free and open to the public. Tickets are not required. But seating is limited and will be available on a first-come first-served basis. Join me for the debate!

As I was making what I call my "Congressional Beat Calls" this morning I came across what might become the latest battle between Republican Congressman Phil English and his Democratic rival Kathy Dahlkemper.

This morning Dahlkemper held a press conference and she was handing out $5 gas cards to voters.

Well...when I spoke with Adam Beebe from the English campaign he said he's "calling their lawyers." Beebe says handing out the cards, essentially money, is against campaign rules.

When I called Tina Mengine from Dahlkemper's campaign to talk about it--I caught her completely off guard. She said, "I think everything is legal. We went through the vetting process."

We'll have to wait and see. Is this a little Congressional Scandal....or is the whole thing just full of gas?

Congressman Phil English delivered the House GOP Radio Address.
It was released on Friday before hitting radio airwaves nationwide.

Take a listen HERE

Pennsylvania's Supreme Court agreed to hear an appeal from independent candidate Stephen Porter.

Earlier this month a commonwealth court judge threw out 15 hundred signatures on Porter's nominating petitions because they were invalid. The ruling removed Porter from the November 4th ballot.

NOW the state supreme court will hear his appeal.

Porter is, of course, running against Republican Phil English and Democrat Kathy Dahlkemper for the 3rd district congressional seat.

In this battleground state of Pennsylvania...we're on the verge of a political war.

PA's voted for Democrats for president since 1992 but Zogby's latest poll shows McCain leading Obama by 4.8 % points.

So who's voting for whom?

In this busy pre-election time there's a lot of talk about what type of voter each candidate needs to court. And there are many traditional ideas about age and voting.

So I did a little experiment...and it might surprise you.

I went over to the Erie Center on Health and Aging to ask a few seniors who they were supporting.

80-year old Robert Bogarte told me, "I think McCain is a little bit too old. We need somebody just a little bit younger."

Fair enough Robert...If elected, John McCain would be the oldest president to take office.

79-year old Dolores Verno told me, "I want the black man to get it. I don't like the Republicans."

And 69 year-old Danielle Lei told me, "He's the first black man and I wish him all the luck. I wish Hillary would have won though."

Roughly 20 percent of Democratic primary voters in Pennsylvania, which Hillary Rodham Clinton won, told exit pollsters that race was a factor in their decision.

But not for the folks I talked to. They were embracing race, without me even mentioning it.

So then I went down to Gannon University's campus to look for some young voters.

Freshman Nick Toscano told me he'd vote for John McCain because he liked his stance on the issues.

And sophomore Thomas Panighetti was all for McCain as well saying, "I think he has a better view on the economy...just how everything is going."

So the story we've been hearing for months...young voters see Barack Obama as a true catalyst of change and John McCain has the upper hand with voters over the age of 35...might not be totally true.

But what is true...here in Pennsylvania Obama is counting on the strong support of college age voters. He opened 65 offices across the state. That's four times as many as McCain and more than Obama opened in any other state.

And John McCain expects the support of an older crowd, as they make up a large part of swing voters. He's hoping Palin brings enthusiasm to the Republican ticket, especially among social conservatives and white women.

So even though we monitor the polls and listen to the best political analysts...we really never can be sure who's voting for whom. And that's what makes election season so much fun.